Green Caucus Week in Review 10/26 – 30

Week in Review: October 26 - 30 (le français suit)

On Monday, Leader of the Green Party of Canada Annamie Paul came in second in the Toronto Centre by-election. She received 32.7% of the vote, representing a 25% increase in her support from the 2019 federal election and the highest ever result for the GPC in Ontario.

Up for debate in the Chamber this week was Bill C6, An Act to Amend the Criminal Code to Include Provisions that would Limit the Negative Impacts of Conversion Therapy in Canada. The Act would ban conversion therapy for youth up to age 18. For adults, the practise would be banned only if it is being forced on someone against their will. Green MPs took every opportunity to urge their colleagues that the same protections afforded youth from this bill should be extended to adults. Jenica explained in a speech that, at any point in life, someone could be coerced into undergoing this “treatment” in exchange for being accepted by their family. Paul and Elizabeth pushed their colleagues to consider a total ban on conversion therapy.

This week, Jenica passed her first amendment as a Member of Parliament. Out of nine proposed amendments on Bill C3, which would require judges to receive training in sexual assault law, four were written by Jenica, and one of hers passed. Jenica’s amendment would require that Indigenous representatives be included in consultations to design the seminars for judges that Bill C3 creates, addressing sexual assault law and social context. Other amendments passed at committee ensure that ‘social context’ includes the realities of systemic racism and systemic discrimination. Jenica also gave a speech on Bill C7, the amended Medical Assistance in Dying legislation. She made it clear that the Green Caucus supports the amended legislation, which allows for advance directives.

Elizabeth pressed the Prime Minister to increase Canada’s diplomatic presence to help diffuse the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. This conflict is currently escalating in the Nagorno Karabakh region, and is being fuelled by military aid sent from Turkey and Israel to Azerbaijan. During adjournment proceedings, Elizabeth also engaged in debate regarding her question on racism in the RCMP, specifically in the context of the dispute between Mi’kmaq and non-Indigenous lobster fishers in Nova Scotia.

In Paul Manly’s question on Friday, he asked the government to address the situation of freighter anchorages in the Southern Gulf Islands, where large freighters have been disturbing residents and the area’s fragile ecosystem far past the Interim Protocol deadline.

In case you missed it, last week Elizabeth participated in the Scaling Up 2020 Conference, usually held in Ottawa. She spoke on a panel called Paris: Getting to a Green & Just Recovery. You can watch a recording of the discussion here.

Key Moments

• Jenica Atwin: Conversion therapy should be banned outright – Bill C6 does not go far enough
• Elizabeth May engages Prime Minister over Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict

Question Period and Member’s Statements

• Elizabeth May: The government should consider a total ban on conversion therapy
• Paul Manly: Bill C6 would be stronger as a total ban on conversion therapy
• Jenica Atwin: The protections afforded to youth by Bill C6 should be extended to adults
• Jenica Atwin: Bill C7 should give people autonomy at the end of their life
• Elizabeth May: The RCMP has failed to protect Mi’kmaw nation’s right to fish
• Paul Manly: The government must stop allowing freighters to anchor in the Southern Gulf Islands
• Paul Manly: The first call to action from the MMIWG report is to implement GLI – Let’s start there
• Paul Manly: Sensitivity training for health care workers would help them care for Indigenous people

​Statements and Press Releases

• Green MP standing firm on importance of intersectionality in training for judges
• Green Party congratulates Leader Annamie Paul on historic gains in Toronto Centre by-election
• Green Party of Canada supports Conservative motion but cautions against hyper-partisan politics

In Their Own Words​

• Elizabeth May – Good Sunday Morning October 25

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Petitions

E-petitions open for signature

• e-2667 Ensure the human rights of Palestinian children (closes November 3)
• e-2837 Eliminate commercial anchorages in the Southern Gulf Islands (closes November 14)
• e-2708 Hold Turkey accountable for human rights violations (closes November 26)
• e-2957 End Canada-Mercosur negotiations (closes November 28)
• e-2828 Reject the Roberts Bank Container Terminal 2 project (closes December 2)
• e-2836 Implement a Guaranteed Livable Income for all Canadians (closes December 14)​
• e-2914 Protect old-growth forests (closes December 21)

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